Wolves Trade #1

[SameOldNudityDrew]

First of all, shout out to Mike Conley. The guy is a class act all the way, and he was exactly what we needed after the DLO era. Smart guy, worked hard, complemented others on the floor, awesome teammate, and made some huge plays for us in key moments. It's easy to overlook the role he played in helping us improve, but he definitely did. Best of luck to him. I honestly would be happy to have him come back and coach!

Now, for the implications: if we basically traded Conley's expiring contract away for nothing other than to lower our salary and get flexibility for making a bigger trade, what happens if we can't make a bigger trade? Is it possible to go back and amend the terms of that trade if one of the other teams wanted to do so, or has that ship sailed? I saw the Bulls were willing to give up White, but the Wolves said no because they wanted the salary relief for possible future trades. What if we get to an hour before the deadline Thursday and there's no bigger trade materializing? Could we go back and say, hey, we'll take White after all, or maybe rope in another team for another player, and have the trade get amended? I feel like I've seen that sort of thing happen, but I could be wrong.

[60WinTim]

First of all, shout out to Mike Conley. The guy is a class act all the way, and he was exactly what we needed after the DLO era. Smart guy, worked hard, complemented others on the floor, awesome teammate, and made some huge plays for us in key moments. It's easy to overlook the role he played in helping us improve, but he definitely did. Best of luck to him. I honestly would be happy to have him come back and coach!

Now, for the implications: if we basically traded Conley's expiring contract away for nothing other than to lower our salary and get flexibility for making a bigger trade, what happens if we can't make a bigger trade? Is it possible to go back and amend the terms of that trade if one of the other teams wanted to do so, or has that ship sailed? I saw the Bulls were willing to give up White, but the Wolves said no because they wanted the salary relief for possible future trades. What if we get to an hour before the deadline Thursday and there's no bigger trade materializing? Could we go back and say, hey, we'll take White after all, or maybe rope in another team for another player, and have the trade get amended? I feel like I've seen that sort of thing happen, but I could be wrong.

Once the deal is finalized (and submitted to the league office), it cannot be modified. However, although this deal has been announced, it has not been finalized, so changes can still be made. I saw a blurb indicating that the deal may not be finalized until Thursday...

[Monster]

First of all, shout out to Mike Conley. The guy is a class act all the way, and he was exactly what we needed after the DLO era. Smart guy, worked hard, complemented others on the floor, awesome teammate, and made some huge plays for us in key moments. It's easy to overlook the role he played in helping us improve, but he definitely did. Best of luck to him. I honestly would be happy to have him come back and coach!

Now, for the implications: if we basically traded Conley's expiring contract away for nothing other than to lower our salary and get flexibility for making a bigger trade, what happens if we can't make a bigger trade? Is it possible to go back and amend the terms of that trade if one of the other teams wanted to do so, or has that ship sailed? I saw the Bulls were willing to give up White, but the Wolves said no because they wanted the salary relief for possible future trades. What if we get to an hour before the deadline Thursday and there's no bigger trade materializing? Could we go back and say, hey, we'll take White after all, or maybe rope in another team for another player, and have the trade get amended? I feel like I've seen that sort of thing happen, but I could be wrong.

Hey ya'll!

Agree with all you said about Conley he did much more good than bad here. It sucks he had to be dealt but even though I haven't seen the last few games it looks like he was just not as effective although probably a useful NBA player in the right situation and doses.

It is interesting they passed up white. He would make a fair amount of sense as an upgrade. On the other hand just looking at the stats from this year...how much difference is there between White and just playing Bones a lot more? Which guys is better/less worse defender? I've always been a fan of White and I do think he is a better player than Bones but I get looking for a better player than him. On the other hand if they have the mid-level available yeah they could be like yeah we will take him after all if he isn't traded. He is also a FA so the Wolves might not have felt like taking him on as what they felt likely was a rental.

From what I've read is people seem like a Giannis trade might not happen now but it might happen in the summer. Who knows. It's not surprising that Connelly is looking for a big upgrade to the roster. The more movement that happens thats good for the Wolves to be making a move even if it isn't for a big time star player.

I think it's interesting how much Finch Praised Conley recently and then he was traded. Not shocking but it was interesting.

[rapsuperstar31]

First of all, shout out to Mike Conley. The guy is a class act all the way, and he was exactly what we needed after the DLO era. Smart guy, worked hard, complemented others on the floor, awesome teammate, and made some huge plays for us in key moments. It's easy to overlook the role he played in helping us improve, but he definitely did. Best of luck to him. I honestly would be happy to have him come back and coach!

Now, for the implications: if we basically traded Conley's expiring contract away for nothing other than to lower our salary and get flexibility for making a bigger trade, what happens if we can't make a bigger trade? Is it possible to go back and amend the terms of that trade if one of the other teams wanted to do so, or has that ship sailed? I saw the Bulls were willing to give up White, but the Wolves said no because they wanted the salary relief for possible future trades. What if we get to an hour before the deadline Thursday and there's no bigger trade materializing? Could we go back and say, hey, we'll take White after all, or maybe rope in another team for another player, and have the trade get amended? I feel like I've seen that sort of thing happen, but I could be wrong.

Once the deal is finalized (and submitted to the league office), it cannot be modified. However, although this deal has been announced, it has not been finalized, so changes can still be made. I saw a blurb indicating that the deal may not be finalized until Thursday...

Plus we now have a 10.8 million trade exception, so we can always fit Ayo into that.

[60WinTim]

MONSTER!!

I thought we lost you. It took a potential Giannis trade to pull you out of the woodwork?!?

[D-Loser25]

For some reason... I'm kinda surprised by THIS trade of Conley.

Now I feel bad for mocking Conley's play lately.

For as little as we really know about these players... seemed like a decent guy. And I remember enjoying his game all the way back to OSU.


[Note: It'll be amusing to think that there's at least a chance I'll have to go from rooting for Conley to rooting for a guy I absolutely hate in James Harden. Yuck... but that's the funny part of sports. It's just laundry, right?]

No need to feel bad at all...your credentials as someone who admired the way Mike played the game are well-established. And we couldn't ignore what happened to his shooting this season.

I also would have to hold my nose to cheer for Harden. But I do think a starting five of Rudy/Naz/Jaden/Ant/Harden would be unguardable.

If we’re able to swap Randle and Dilly for Harden, yeah we have to do that in a heartbeat. I prefer this trade because I don’t want to give up Joan of Jaden, even if Harden is tough to cheer for. That offense would be insane

[thedoper]

I personally do not want anything to do with Harden. I would rather have more of a complimentary guard like Jrue. The reason I mentioned him was I feel like the Bucks want their picks back from Portland. Maybe we have a player they want? Not sure. Id rather have Ja than Harden if I am totally honest about it. And that is not because I think Ja would be great for this team or is in any way a surefire bet. Something about Harden just seems wrong for us between the age, his playoff history, his dealings with teams when he isnt getting what he wants for contracts.

[WildWolf2813]

I personally do not want anything to do with Harden. I would rather have more of a complimentary guard like Jrue. The reason I mentioned him was I feel like the Bucks want their picks back from Portland. Maybe we have a player they want? Not sure. Id rather have Ja than Harden if I am totally honest about it. And that is not because I think Ja would be great for this team or is in any way a surefire bet. Something about Harden just seems wrong for us between the age, his playoff history, his dealings with teams when he isnt getting what he wants for contracts.

trading Randle for Harden forces this team to place so much faith in 2 guys we simply won't trust ever:

Harden and Leonard Miller, because his role increases big time if a Randle trade happens.

[SameOldNudityDrew]

Not sure how I feel about a Randle for Harden trade. My gut screams "NO!" but if you squint, I can see the logic.

On one hand, it makes sense. We've basically got two starting PFs and no legit PGs. Randle for Harden essentially balances out that problem.

Their on-court offensive production is pretty similar, though obviously, Harden initiates and runs the offense more. That could be a problem alongside Ant, though it's worth remembering that Harden has a lower usage than Ant and Giannis has a higher one. I can see Ant and basically everyone on the team benefitting from playing off the ball with Harden finding them for shots. Ant, Naz, Donte, and Jaden will get a bunch of catch-and-shoot opportunities. And frankly, Harden should be fairly well-suited to throw lobs to Rudy.

The decision whether to trade for Harden is kind of a question about how much we like the idea of Ant and Randle more or less running the offense. Personally, I think they're both pretty good, but if we honestly think Ant isn't quite completely suited for running the point, I can see the logic behind getting a guy like Harden.

Where things really break down for me is about the defense and team culture. For all his faults, Randle did step up as a defender when it mattered, including during the playoffs, and his defense on Wembley looked pretty good earlier this year. And while he's kind of a prickly personality, he seems pretty locked in much of the time. With Harden, I think you're going to have to cover for him a lot on defense and we'll be scrambling to contain penetration. And there's a question of how he'd fit in with the culture on the team or whether he'd just make things awkward. I'd really worry about that.

In terms of balancing the roster and avoiding having to trade away too much, I can see the logic behind trying to get Harden if Giannis isn't going to happen (which it looks like it isn't until this next summer). We wouldn't have to give everything up, so we'd still have a contender now. If we were able to get Giannis, but had to trade away basically everything to get him, I'd be a bit nervous about how everything would work out. Harden is older than Julius, but he does seem to have the kind of "old man" game that should last a couple more years.

All in all, I don't know about Harden. It actually seems more feasible (at least on offense) than when I first thought about it. But I'd worry about his locker room presence and his defense.

[rapsuperstar31]

Jake Fischer on Giannis to Minnesota rumors:

“He is very much focused on the story and the arch of his career. That has been very apparent…. Talking to people around Giannis he cares about the narrative structure of his next situation just as much as his exit from MIL…. Joining young superstar in Anthony Edwards and helping the Wolves get past the WCF after two straight trips and a long window working with him and creating history in Minnesota they have not achieved would certainly be a major storyline… You’re not going to have a 5/6 year window competing for a title in Golden State with Steph like you theoretically would next to Ant in MIN, next to Brunson in NYK, next to Bam Adebayo in Miami”